How many Japanese listed companies are net cash?
Data as of Oct 28, 2026 (latest annual statements). Computed Oct 27, 2026. Refreshed monthly.
Key figures
- Net cash (cash > interest-bearing debt)
- 2,194 / 3,381 (65%)
- No interest-bearing debt at all
- 613 (18%)
- Net cash of 30% of total assets or more
- 848 (25%)
- Median net cash / total assets (net-cash companies)
- 23%
By industry
Industries with at least 20 classified companies, highest net-cash share first.
| Industry | Classified | Net cash | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information & Communication | 577 | 513 | 89% |
| Pharmaceutical | 62 | 47 | 76% |
| Services | 520 | 384 | 74% |
| Machinery | 195 | 142 | 73% |
| Precision Instruments | 43 | 31 | 72% |
| Construction | 148 | 100 | 68% |
| Electric Appliances | 199 | 133 | 67% |
| Wholesale Trade | 291 | 192 | 66% |
| Metal Products | 85 | 54 | 64% |
| Glass & Ceramics Products | 49 | 31 | 63% |
| Iron & Steel | 34 | 21 | 62% |
| Chemicals | 183 | 113 | 62% |
| Other Products | 107 | 65 | 61% |
| Transportation Equipment | 65 | 39 | 60% |
| Foods | 111 | 60 | 54% |
| Textiles & Apparels | 44 | 23 | 52% |
| Retail Trade | 314 | 148 | 47% |
| Warehousing & Harbor Transportation Services | 34 | 12 | 35% |
| Pulp & Paper | 24 | 7 | 29% |
| Nonferrous Metals | 29 | 8 | 28% |
| Real Estate | 132 | 31 | 23% |
| Land Transportation | 59 | 12 | 20% |
| Electric Power & Gas | 25 | 5 | 20% |
Method
- Universe: 3,981 listed operating companies still filing (funds and REITs excluded; banks, brokers, insurers and other financing companies — 181 — excluded because deposits and policy reserves are not comparable to borrowings), using each one's latest full-year balance sheet from the past 18 months.
- Net cash = cash and deposits − interest-bearing debt, where debt = short-term loans + current portion of long-term loans + bonds + long-term loans.
- Lease liabilities, commercial paper and separately reported convertible bonds are not counted. Figures are as filed, with no restatement.
- Consolidated figures where filed. Computed from the standardised balance sheets in the public API.
Limitations
- IFRS and US-GAAP filers are not classified (294 companies), because their borrowings are not yet mapped to standard lines. 2 companies with no cash line and 123 with no recent annual statement are also left out (419 in total).
- We have no share prices, so this page does not count companies trading below 1x book value or compare cash with market value.
- Excluding leases makes lease-heavy sectors (retail, restaurants) look less indebted than they are.
- Balances are at the fiscal year-end and miss seasonal swings. This is not investment advice.